The National Cat Show 2018, Wellington NZ (Movie)

The National Cat Show of the New Zealand Cat Fancy was held on the 3rd of June. I have had a lot of fun creating a video which I hope captures the excitement and the beautiful cats in this, the most important cat show of the year.

I enjoy reading about the international cat associations I see online and was excited to read that the National Cat Show was being hosted locally. It took place during the recent public holiday, Queen’s Birthday Weekend and the opportunity to visit and film the cats was irresistible.

There was a warm welcome at the entry desk.

The National Cat Show 2018

We arrived early at the venue, the Wellington Indian Association, as we knew the show would be very popular and were lucky to get a good spot outside the front gates.

On the way to the entrance, I spotted some lovely personalised cat number plates. So, of course, we had to make a detour into the car park to take pictures. It did seem funny wandering around looking at bumpers, but I can tell you that cat lovers definitely wear their hearts on their number plates. The plates are featured in this post.

The Dominion Cat Club Inc. organised the event and the show was open to pedigree and domestic cats in a series of classes:

Junior and Intermediate cats

Seniors and Veterans

NZ Bred cats and,

Kittens in a variety of categories. (You can see some of the kitten judging in our video.)

Judging the Cats

All of the cats here, from the large Norwegian Forest Cat and Maine Coons to the characterful Oriental Shorthairs and the Devon and Cornish Rex breeds looked perfect to me but I’m not an experienced judge. They will look for perfection on a number of points.

In the video, I captured judges assessing candidates for different cat classes. The cats are patient while they are examined, held and picked up. Crowds gather around popular breeds as the judging takes place.

The judges came from New Zealand, across the Tasman Sea from Australia and from the USA. New Zealand Cat Fancy is very much on the worldwide cat radar to garner prestigious judges from America. Each cat in a ring was examined and the final selections made.

The finalists in each category were summoned to the stage for a final critique and praise before the prestigious ribbons were handed out. As a cat owner, this would be a proud moment for me if I was competing.

Cat cafe Neko Ngeru sponsored a rosette for the Companion Cat category which was won by a gorgeous ginger.

Of course, everyone had a favourite at the cat show. I spotted several breeds I would love to take home. These including engaging and delightful Tilly the companion cat. Two black and white Oriental Shorthairs who are featured in the film were very vocal and delighted visitors.

Cat Themed Vendors

Although the display area was small, we were pleased to meet Neko Ngeru. They brought their unique range of cat-themed merchandise from the cafe.

We also met our sponsors, the designers behind MonkeeTree.com. It is an innovative indoor/outdoor cat modular climbing system. Monkee Tree designed and made the steps you can see in our video of the Neko Ngeru cat cafe grand opening and you can read our review.

Cat Evolution presented their stylish Meyou Cat Bed which can be spotted in the cat show video, and they also brought along the impressive Litter Robot.

One Last Frustration for a Cat Lover

In spite of many courteous signs asking visitors not to poke fingers into the cages, some people insisted on doing so, and this was frustrating to see.

A cat show cannot monitor every cage, much as they would like to. If you visit a cat show, please respect the cats and the owners’ requests. A ‘Pet Me’ cat, like our Therapy Cat friend Summer, will welcome your approach much more as she has strong people skills. Show cats will be more nervous, even if you smile.

We hope you enjoy our report and the video. It was a lot of fun to make the video and we would love to know your favourite part!

I was able to visit the cat show in Houston this past week that was in the same hotel as the CWA conference. Of course, I loved visiting the Persians! I have a few photos that I will share later. I wasn’t able to see the finalists, but all were perfect to me.

What a great show and so many beautiful cats! Your video is great, it showed what is was really like there and I love the music you chose. It ticks me off when people stick their fingers in cages too, especially kids whose parents don’t seem to care what their kids do. It’s so unsettling for the kitties! I am in love with the big gray cat in that third to last photo. I love gray cats so much. It looks like a British Shorthair , which I believe is the same breed the Cheshire Cat was. This cat is just what I think of when I think of the Cheshire cat! Thanks for sharing.
Love and Biscuits,
Dogs Luv Us and We Luv Them

Marjorie, what a wonderful video! And, oh, the beauties in there! I was captivated by the black and white one with the unique facial markings at around 1:15 in, and that gray and white fluffer before that one, just beautiful. And Tilly in the beginning really reminded me of our adopted tuxedo feral, Binx! I’ve loved black cats since a child. I had one then I named TC (after one of my fave shows as a kid – Top Cat the cartoon!). Wonderful job! Thanks for sharing it with us!

Loved your video Marjorie! Felt like I was there, especially when the judges were handling some of the cats. I gasped a few times. Not because the judges were doing anything wrong, but because I was thinking of my old cat and how much she would not like being handled. Those cat show cats truly are pros!

Do the cats go through less grooming than the dogs? I keep meaning to try to go to a cat show but haven’t made it to one yet. Mr. N has strong opinions about being left home alone. And I can’t take him to a cat show!

You all judge in a different set of classes – here we judge in kittens, longhair and shorthair champions (unaltered), and long and shorthair premier or alters (depending on the association). And Household Pets. I show 5 household pets. It was really interesting to see the setup – everyone is in matching cages – here it is a myriad of stuff. I’m showing this weekend. I was planning a write up after next weekend’s regionals. Maybe I’ll be able to get enough non-crappy video and pictures to do something decent.

Fun video! The hissing one made me laugh. Great recap of the event! And I agree with your frustration, why can’t people follow the rules and not poke their fingers in? Simple request! You’d think someone going to a cat show would get it.

Loved the video Marjorie! Where were the Birmans? The Birman group I am in on FB has lots of members from NZ and Australia. I love cat shows. The first one I went to after losing Perry was so emotional. I saw a Blue Point kitten and started balling my eyes out (how embarrasing!). The owner let me hold here and then I really lost it! Such a special breed, to me anyway. All because of that boy. Thanks for sharing the cat show!

Someone did that for my daughter after we lost her beloved Flame. One of the girls I show with showed a cat that looked almost exactly like him except for the tail (Flame was a bobtail.) Of course, we know the rules, but my daughter finally asked if she could pet him. The girl picked her cat up and handed him to my daughter and he put his head under her chin. We see the cat now and then and my daughter always gets a snuggle. Sometimes it is about way more than the awards.

Cat shows are pretty similar in the U.S. to this one. In fact, I recognized one of the judges, Vicki Nye – she has judged me! And she gave me a final once. I have my own enclosure (2, in fact), which zip up so people can’t touch me unless my human allows. Of course, I am a Pet Me Cat, so it’s nearly always okay, if I am out and accepting visitors.

I loved watching this. I loved the wegie the best of course. I’ve tried to do video at my last couple shows, even if it’s just my cats’ finals but it always ends up rubbish. It’s hard to handle cats and video at the same time. I get so wrapped up in their performance I forget what I’m doing lol

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